1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a brassiere (a functional garment). More specifically, some implementations relate to a functional brassiere that simultaneously provides orthopedic benefits as well as visual breast enhancement.
2. Background and Related Art
Throughout history, attempts have been made to design garments that improve a physical and/or a visual appearance of a wearer. An improved physical appearance can lead to an increase in self-esteem and confidence of the wearer and can produce additional physiological and physical benefits. Because of these benefits, many people continue to develop and produce garments that increase the wearer's physical appearance and that are configured to provide support to a portion to a wearer's body. Among such garments is a bra (or brassiere), an undergarment designed to support a woman's breasts and/or to improve a physical and/or visual appearance of the wearer.
A plethora of different bra models have been designed to provide support to a wearer's breasts, to enhance the size and/or shape of the wearer's breasts, to elevate the wearer's breasts, to increase comfort, and/or to be fashionable. For example, a push-up bra is designed to elevate and draw the breasts together to create cleavage, to give the appearance of increased breast size, and to improve the appearance of the wearer's body outline.
While push-up bra designs can increase physical appearance, some such bras can also cause discomfort and physiological strain. These bras are typically designed with a pair of breast cups statically attached to a back strap that encircles the wearer's torso. In some cases, shoulder straps are statically attached to the top of each breast cup and extend over the wearer's shoulder and then statically attach to the back strap. Because the shoulder straps (in some conventional push-up bras) provide the primary or only mechanism for achieving an upward force to elevate the breasts, the shoulder straps often also exert a countervailing downward force on the shoulder, back, and/or neck. This countervailing downward force can increase static and dynamic pressure and/or load on these areas, leading to discomfort, pain, poor posture, and stooping of the back. It can also cause the thoracic section of the spine to protrude backwards, bending of the head forward, flattening of the chest, slouching of the shoulders forward, rounding of the back, protrusion of the stomach forward, and/or protrusion of the shoulder blades from the back. Incorrect posture and stoop can also lead to strain to the skeletal structure; motor apparatus disorder; headaches; malfunctions of the respiratory, nerve, and/or cardiovascular systems; droopy abdomen; spine aches; weakening of the sural and hip muscles; reduced waist mobility; flaccid facial skin; appearance of a double chin; and/or other physiological maladies.
Some orthopedic bras have been developed to improve posture and counteract stoop caused by wearing a bra. Oftentimes, these orthopedic bras are designed to pull the shoulders back and to draw the shoulder blades together, thereby decreasing the pressure on the shoulders, back, and neck while improving posture and combating stoop. Although some orthopedic bras may provide these physical benefits, some may also reduce the aesthetic appearance of the breasts and the bodyline. For example, by bringing the shoulders back, some orthopedic bras greatly reduce the appearance of cleavage and cause the breasts to point outwardly rather than forward.
Thus, while a variety of bra designs currently exist, challenges still exist, including those listed above. Accordingly, it would be an improvement in the art to augment or even replace current techniques with other techniques.